


Second chances

by hamfxtz



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Future Kid, Kid Fic, Parenthood, Post-Season/Series 06, Twins, dad!fitz, new academy, professor!jemma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-07-22
Packaged: 2020-07-10 08:30:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19902811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hamfxtz/pseuds/hamfxtz
Summary: Fitz leaves SHIELD, Jemma stays. A few months later, they have twins. A year later, Mack comes up with a proposal for Jemma and suddenly, they'll have to learn how to deal with parenthood, work and trust.





	1. build a better life

**Author's Note:**

> Based on this idea that @thunderfitz gave me on twitter: 
> 
> "Fitz decides to leave SHIELD for his mental health, + Jemma becomes a professor at the new academy. they one day have children, twins, + Fitz becomes a stay-at-home father for them (a boy + a girl) while Jemma stays a professor. Deke lives with them, so he helps with the kids whenever Simmons isn't home, + sometimes Jemma goes behind Fitz's back, asking one of their friends (like Daisy) to go help Fitz out sometimes, even when Fitz constantly stresses to her "I'm a grown man, I can take care of babies"
> 
> Thank you! And enjoy <3

Chapter 1  
Once again, they managed to save the world from an imminent catastrophe, Izel almost beat them, however, their team was unstoppable. They had been so close to the end of the world many times before and it was bound to be tiring. But they did it anyway, for the greater good, for the protection of human kind and to continue with SHIELD's legacy, to honor Coulson.

Fitz got worse, the stress and the constant feeling of being worried were starting to shine through, he heard the doctor more and more. After he learned about the split his other self suffered, he couldn't risk getting even worse and hurt the team, hurt his friends or hurt Jemma. He had to stop, he had to find a way to make the pain lessen and his wounds heal. 

He was the only one sat in the lab in the middle of the night, fighting to make a decision that wouldn't hurt anyone, he needed time and he couldn't keep going until it all crashed down and drowned it alive. He knew what he needed to do, so he got up, turned off the computer and went off to find Jemma in their bedroom. Once he reached the door, he took a shaky breath and went it, Jemma was there getting dressed.

"Finally, I was going to go out and look for you, where have you been?" Jemma's voice and worried expression were there when he stepped inside. 

"Sorry, I was in the lab, lost the track of time" He knew his answer was vague and unsettling, she looked up and finished putting on one of his t-shirts. 

"Are you okay?" She stepped closer and tried to find his eyes, who were looking everywhere but her, his mind was racing but he knew what he needed to do.

"No" He let out a breath and then looked up. "I want to leave SHIELD" There, he said, the big bag he was carrying, all the pressure gone but replaced with anxiety over what her answer would be, how would Jemma react? 

"Are you sure?" Her voice was soft, she took his hand and led him to the bed, so they could be sitting next to each other. “How long have you…?” She couldn’t finish the sentence, but he understood what she wanted to know. 

“Since we came back, probably, and yes, I’m sure, I’m still…hearing him, you know?” He lowered his head as he spoke but Jemma’s eyes remained on him, ready to listen to whatever he had to say. “I can’t keep doing this, all this pressure, all the pain, it’s too much.” 

“What are you afraid of?” She asked softly.

“I’m afraid I’m gonna break.” He answered almost in a heartbeat. “I can’t hurt you or our friends, but I can’t get better if I’m still here.” Fitz tried to explain, finally looking up. “You don’t have to come with me, I mean, I want to get help, I want to live in a less stressful environment, but I don’t want to force you to come with me if that’s not what you want and…” He started rambling, his anxiety pouring in, words leaving his mouth in a rushed way. 

“Fitz, Fitz, listen to me, it’s okay.” She grabbed both sides of his face softly, letting the feeling of her hands on his cheeks ground him. “If you want to leave, that’s okay. I won’t stop you.” 

“It doesn’t bother you?”

“What? No, why would it? Fitz, all I want for you…for us is to be happy, to be safe and if that’s what you need, I support you and I promise you, we’re gonna be okay.”  
He raised his eyebrows, that was…not what he was expecting, but his heart leaped with joy, he loved her so much. 

“Thank you.” He whispered and leaned to kiss her, letting their lips join in a tender expression of love. “I love you, I love you so much, Jemma Simmons.” She smiled and pulled him into an embrace, they were going to be okay, she knew it and she hoped Fitz could believe it too.  
\--------------  
“The Academy? Like, the SHIELD Academy?” Jemma couldn’t believe what she was hearing, Mack was planning on opening the academy again, letting new bright minds and brave heart become the new generation of shield agents. “That’s…wonderful.” She finally said, after the memories of her time at the academy flooded her mind. 

“There’s another thing I wanted to say…well, ask you, feel free to take some time to think about it.” Mack’s voice and his presence were always a bit intimidating, but she nodded, curiosity peeking in. 

“I would like for you to be one of the professors at the new academy.” Her mouth opened in surprise but soon her expression changed, her smile reached her eyes, unable to hide her excitement, she was about to yell “YES” at the top of her lungs, but she remembered her little girls and his little boy were waiting at home with her husband and grandson, concern settled in her stomach. 

“I…can’t believe it and thank you. And yes, I would like to think about it, can I give you an answer tomorrow?” She finally answered and Mack simply nodded, she smiled back and left his office, she needed to get home and talk to Fitz, this could be a huge opportunity for her. He left SHIELD a few days after their conversation, they moved out together…and Deke, which was good, he helped around a lot and Fitz liked him this time. However, she didn’t stop being an active agent until a few months later, the news of her pregnancy surprised all of them.

Between him leaving shield and her pregnancy, it had been a year and a couple of months, the twins were only a few months old and if she started working in the academy as professor, that meant leaving Fitz alone with their children. He certainly was so much better, both physically and mentally than when he decided to step down. She had no doubt he could handle it, but she still had to talk to him.

It was almost time for dinner when she got home, the familiar smell of homemade pasta filled her nose and she couldn’t help but smile. 

“Welcome home” Fitz looked up when she entered the kitchen, he put down the knife he was holding and smiled. 

“Hello…” She let her eyes take him in, his curls made him look adorable, kind of like his academy self, he was wearing a green shirt and had a towel on his shoulder…she loved Fitz, she loved to see him having fun, even after taking care of their daughter all day. She got closer, so she could finally give him a proper kiss, then sat down in front of him in the kitchen counter. 

“Maggie is sleeping, Deke is playing with Phillip and dinner’s almost ready.” He informed and returned to chopping vegetables. “Maybe take a shower while I finish and set everything up?” 

“Deal.” She got up and went to have a shower. Almost half an hour later, she was back in the kitchen in a fresh set of clothes and a content expression on her face. “I checked on Maggie, she didn’t even stir.” She laughed softly. “And Deke is putting Phillip to sleep.” 

“Thank god, Maggie spent all day crying, I had no idea why.” Fitz said while putting down on one last plate on the table. “But she’s okay now, no need to worry.” He added, knowing that Jemma had worried instantly. “So, let’s eat.” 

Honestly, it was delicious, homemade pasta was always good, but every time Fitz made it was a precious gift, they were both almost done, she took a deep breath and decided this was as good time as any. 

“So…Mack talked to me today.” She began, getting his attention, he raised his eyebrows and encouraged her to continue with one of his hands. “He said he’s re opening the academy…and he wants me to be a professor there.” His eyes widened, taking in her words, he looked rather surprised and how could he not? 

“What did you say? Did you take the job?” He asked after a few minutes, when what she said finally clicked in his head. 

“I said I’d think about it…so, what do you think? Should I take it?

“Do you want to?”

“Well…yes, but, we have the twins and I don’t want to leave you all alone every day.” 

“Jemma, I can take care of them, plus, Deke can help, and if this is something you really want to do, we can work it out, yes?” Tears filled up her eyes, it was impossible for him to be so selfless and so…caring. 

“But…what if she needs me? What if YOU need me?” She bit her lip, what would he do then?

“You’ll only be a phone call away; I can do this.” She trusted him, she really did, if he was on board, she had no obstacles in her way. “Let’s make a deal, take the job and we’ll see how we deal with it for a few weeks, if you don’t like the job or I can’t deal with the twins, we’ll see what we can do.” The proposal sounded good, so she wiped the tears that someone found her way to her cheeks and finally nodded. 

“I can’t thank you enough.” 

“No need to, I’m your husband, we’re a team, right?” He arched the corners of his mouth into the lovely smile she loved so much, contentment filled her heart and finally dared to believe the promise she made to him a year ago, they were going to be okay. 

“I’m also here.” Deke’s voice full of fake indignation interrupted the moment, and they both bursted into laughter. 

“Yeah, you too. Are you up to take care of the kids with me?” Deke raised his eyebrows in confusion, but finally nodded and got up. “Why not? Today was good, I’m your right hand man.” 

As she looked at his grandson and her husband in front of her, doubt slowly started leaving her…maybe this could work.


	2. as a team

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fitz takes care of the twins while Jemma works as a professor at the new shield academy and worries about her family but they always have family and friends who will help then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part of 2 of this little fic, this has a bit more fluff and little family moments so enjoy!! Please tell me what you think and if you notice any mistakes please let me know, I'm not a native speaker and corrections are always welcome <3 Once again, thanks!

Fitz's first few weeks of taking care of the twins had been...okay, he had Deke by his side almost all the time and he grew to appreciate all the things his grandson did to help him, honestly, he couldn't have made it without him.

The kids were getting bigger and noisier, Maggie cried more often and Phillip liked to sleep and eat. Deke liked to play with their little man a lot and it seemed the now six months old baby enjoyed his company. 

He was currently in the middle of feeding Maggie while Deke played with Philip, so far, Maggie ate almost everything but Phillip was picky about the things he liked, so he had to make something they both enjoyed besides only one type of mashed fruit or vegetable, according to Jemma anyway.

"C'mon, one more for Daddy, yeah?" He tried in a sweet tone this time, Maggie opened her mouth and ate the last of the food. "Good job, little monkey" His baby girl smiled and it was contagious, so he ended up smiling as well, he grabbed a small towel and wiped the corners of her mouth. "Deke, have you started feeding Phillip?" Deke didn't answer, he rolled his eyes and got up to look for him, he took Maggie in his arms and went into the living room, where Deke was encouraging his baby to roll around, which was, honestly, kind of adorable.

"Deke! Stop making the baby roll around and give him some food, please." He tried to sound serious, but nowdays he was mostly tired and happy at the same time, having the twins were the source of his joy everyday.

"Okay, okay, I tried but he doesn't want that, I wouldn't either, it looks like someone puked in a plate and gave it to a baby" Deke explained. "Phillip doesn't like mashed sweet potatoes." 

"But...Jemma said we should start giving them new food, what am I supposed to do?" Fitz sighed and went to look for a bottle of milk in the fridge. "Here, give him this, I'll talk to Jemma when she gets back."

"Are you sure?" Deke asked already grabbing the baby and getting them both up the floor. 

"Yeah, she'll know what to do, I can't force feed a baby, can I?"

The weeks went on, the twins were now eight months old and Jemma's work as a professor was better than ever, she enjoyed teaching young people like she once was to see the wonder of science, of creating and understanding the world around them. However, the feeling of uneasiness every time she left the house and the kids alone with Fitz and Deke never disappeared.

Fitz asked for help when he needed it, but those questions where mostly about what to give the twins or what to do when one of them didn't want to sleep, but somehow, he started to question less things, he was.. learning, and that made her proud in so many ways.

She often missed her kids, but Mack made sure she had at least a day off and the weekends free so she could enjoy time with her family. The days where Deke wasn't with Fitz were especially hard, he only had two hands and twins could be...difficult, but somehow, they made it work. 

"Hello?" She closed the door behind her, the living room was empty and the house was silent, which was...weird, usually Fitz would be cooking or hanging out with Deke after he put the twins to sleep. "Fitz?" She asked again, a little louder this time, she knew Deke wasn't there, but where was the rest of her family? 

She made her way to their bedroom. Fitz was sitting in an armchair, asleep, with both their kids on each arm, his mouth was slighly open, the soft light of the moon gleaming through the window made his curls shine, he looked soft and relaxed. The scene in front of her made her realized how tired he must be every day, taking care of two babies and everything in the house when she wasn't there, it made her feel kind of bad. 

Carefully, she took Maggie from one of his arms and went to lay her in her crib, and then did the same with Phillip, Fitz didn't even stir and she decided not to wake him up, even though he would wake up with his neck in pain.

She went out of the bedroom to have a bath and find something to eat, thinking about how to help Fitz a bit more, she always knew he was a hero, in every way anyone could think of. But heroes needed help once in a while.

When she finished eating, she heard footsteps approaching, Fitz must have woken up, she smiled and got up, a very disheveled and still very much asleep Fitz greeted her sight. "When did you get here?" He asked, his voice deep and heavy with exhaustion.

"Almost an hour ago, noticed you were sleeping and I didn't want to wake you, you looked adorable, by the way." She answered, getting close to him and leaving a kiss on his mouth. "I'd suggest we both go to sleep now, you must be tired and I am too, does it sound like a good idea?"

He nodded and they both went to bed, wrapped in each other's arms. Jemma let herself be held in Fitz's warm embrace and she couldn't wish a better life, she had everything she wanted.

"Will you go? Please?" Jemma hoped she'd said yes, Daisy was free and she was not, and she knew Fitz was alone in the house again. "Deke isn't there and I'm honestly worried, Maggie had a fever last night and Fitz hasn't answered my calls so...please?" She rushed the words out, the other side of line was silent for a few seconds until she heard an answer.

"Okay, don't worry, I'll go and help Fitz, besides, I haven't seen the twins in while, I bet they miss their favorite aunt." She could picture the smile on Daisy's face as she that and she smiled too.

"Thank you, I love you Daisy, let me know if anything goes wrong."

"No problem and will do."

She hung up feeling a little relived and went back to the class she was teaching.

Daisy arrived at the FitzSimmons household a solid 15 minutes later, she could her the sound of something breaking as she stepped inside.

"No, Phillip, stop that, get away from there, you'll hurt yourself." Fitz was trying to stop Phillip from grabbing a piece from a broken plate that lay on the floor while having Maggie on his arms.

"Do you need help with that...?" Daisy asked ironically as she got closer, Fitz looked up and sighed in relief. 

"Yes please, can you grab them while I clean thiss mess?" She nodded and took both the kids in her arms, Fitz got to work and cleaned the broken pieces, making sure to remove eveything so the kids wouldn't get hurt.

Once he was done, he grabbed Maggie and let out a small thank you. "Were you passing by? Or did you decided to visit ua on this fine day?" Fitz asked as rocked Maggie in his arms, the baby looked a little flushed and her cheeks were a bit red.

"Yeah, I wanted to come and check how you're doing." She lied, knowing Jemma didn't want Fitz to know she send her.

"Oh well, thank you, I'm sorry I have nothing to offer you, I've busy trying to get Maggie's fever to come down and getting Phillip away from danger." 

"Have you called a doctor?"

"Yes, he said that if her fever got higher than 100.4, I should get her to the hospital to see him." He informed, she could feel the fear in his voice. "But, she hasn't, so I think I can manage it for now. Can you please watch Phillip while I take care of Maggie?"

"Sure, I'm happy to help." Fitz went to the bedroom and she stayed with Phillip, he handed her a little monkey toy to play with, so she set to do that with him, using her powers to make the toy move around and to her delight, Phillip let out little happy squeals of joy everytime she did it.

An hour later, Phillip got tired so she took him in her arms and led him to the twins bedroom to put him in his crib, he found Fitz in a corner sitting on an armchair, singing softly to Maggie, apparently trying to get her to sleep. 

She couldn't take her eyes of the sight in front of her and to be honest, Fitz didn't have an awful voice, she smiled to herself, ready to tell Jemma about the little moment she got to witness.

"Oh, hi, did he get tired?" Fitz asked once he stopped singing and realized she was there, Daisy nodded and stepped inside so she could put Phillip down in a more comfortable position inside his crib.

"Thanks for your help, Daisy." He finally said, still sitting and grabbing Maggie like he was afraid that is he let her go, she was going to break. 

"It looked like you needed it, and I'm more than happy to spend time around then." She glanced at him again and then decided to aks the question that was bothering her. "Why didn't you call Jemma?

His brows deepened and he shrugged his shoulders. "I didn't want to bother her, she's probably busy and I also didn't want her to worry even more."

And for her to think he couldn't take care of their kids, but he kept that part to himself.

"Okay...but, remember, she's your wife, she's their mother, I know that if only you had asked she would've dropped everything and come help."

"But she doesn't need to, I can handle it." He insisted.

"That doesn't mean you have to." She tried to make him understand that even though he could do it alone, he had a whole bunch of friends and family that would help him if he needed it. "If you don't want to call Jemma or if Deke isn't around, remember that you can count on us, even May will be willing to help if you ask nicely." They both laughed at the thought of May and the twins hanging out. "Just remember that you're not alone, okay?"

"Okay..." He smiled lazily and that was good enough for her.

"Want me to go and pick up some food? I'm sure as hell not going to cook and neither are you." She offered grabbing her bag to get the keys of her motorcycle. 

"Sure, chinese is okay. Jemma likes it too, I'm sure she'll want to end once she arrives."

"Chinese it is." She left Fitz alone again, hoping that her words reached him, she loved seeing him doing well, but life was a constant challenge, especially when kids were involved and she was happy for her friends, glad that finally their lives weren't full of danger or heartache all the time, they were doing well.

"Jemma, c'mon, I'm a grown man, I can take care of babies." Fitz insisted as Jemma pressed her lips together. "I'm serious, I've been doing okay so far, no need to worry, right, Deke?" He nudged at his grandson, hoping to get some support.

"Oh yeah, we're doing good, even May came by the other day, I can tell she was impressed by out taking care of babies skills." Good enough, Jemma let out a breath but finally sta down next to them, it was one of her free days and so far she had enjoyed the company of her family a lot.

"Are you sure? Don't you need my help around here?" It's not like she was missing that much time, but she still felt like she needed to do more.

"Jemma, you're doing your part, we're doing ours, everything's okay. You don't need to worry. I'm serious." Fitz grabbed her hand as he spoke in a tone that made her uneasiness melt away. "I'm even asking for help when I need it, aren't I?"

"I'm not sure if asking Hunter for help qualifies, but I know." He couldn't help but laugh and remember the tine Hunter was around their home, ended up playing with the twins all the afternoon and slept in the floor with Phillip and Maggie on top of him while Fitz drew on his face with a black marker. "My shifts will change soon and I'll be around more, but...these past few months have been fantastic, thank you, thank you both." Jemma smiled at both of her boys and her eyes were shining a little bit, she was happy. 

A few hours later, after dinner and putting the kids to sleep, they finally laid on their bed next to each other.

"I admit, it was a bit of a challenge, but we made it, right?" Fitz's voice cut through the silence that reigned the room.

"Yes, somehow, we did it, I'm proud of you, I'm proud of us." Jemma couldn't wipe off the grin of her face. "I had my doubts, I even wanted to quit, I'm glad I didn't."

"I'm glad you didn't too, you deserve that Jemma, you deserve to do something you love." She got close and let her eyes fall close and their mouths joined in a kiss, full of love, passion and gratefulness. 

"If this is the kind of kiss I'm getting for taking care of the twins I'll gladly continue doing it." Fitz said after they split apart, making her burts in laughter once again.

"Just wait and see, I have a few other surprises to show you how grateful I am." She teased, raising her eyebrows and biting her lower lip.

His eyes widened and he gulped down. "Ok...okay, I'm down with that." 

"I love you, Leopold Fitz.

"And I love you, Jemma Simmons."

He reached for a kiss again and this time, they didn't stop proving their love to each other until way past midnight. They made it. They were okay and they were happy. It seemed that finally, after years of constant challenges, all was well.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Yes, this fic has two chapters, the second one will deal with Fitz trying to take care of the twins and getting some help from the team. 
> 
> Let me know if there's something you'd like to see here or if you even want to read chapter 2.  
> ALSO, if you noticed any mistakes please let me know, I'm not a native speaker and corrections are always welcome. Thank you again! <3


End file.
